Interpretation Act 1984 PDF

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Western Australia

Interpretation Act 1984

As at 21 Jan 2017

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Extract from www.slp.wa.gov.au, see that website for further information

Western Australia

Interpretation Act 1984 Contents Part I — Preliminary 1. 2. 3. 4.

Short title Commencement Application Act binds Crown

2 2 2 2

Part II — General interpretation provisions 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 13A. 13B. 13CA. 13C. 13D. 14. 15. 15A.

Terms used in written laws Definitions in a written law, application of Written laws to be construed subject to State’s legislative power Written laws always speaking Parts of speech and grammatical forms Gender and number Sovereign, references to Minister, references to British subject etc., references to De facto relationship and de facto partner, references to Standards Association of Australia, references to Local government districts, references to When death of a person occurs Bankrupt and related expressions, references to References to 2 or more provisions to be inclusive Internal references in written laws, construction of Reference to paragraph

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3 12 12 12 12 12 13 13 13 14 15 15 16 16 17 17 18

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Interpretation Act 1984

Contents

16. 17. 18. 19.

Reference to written law is to written law as amended Disjunctive construction of “or” Purpose or object of written law, use of in interpretation Extrinsic material, use of in interpretation

18 18 18 19

Part III — Commencement and citation 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27.

Commencement of Acts Time of commencement of written laws Act commencing on proclamation, commencement of certain provisions of Proclamation of commencement of Act, construction of power to make Date of assent, evidence of Some powers in Act may be exercised before it commences Citation of written laws References to commencement of written law if different provisions commence on different days

21 21 21 22 22 22 24 25

Part IV — Provisions as to enactment and operation of written law 28. 29. 30. 31. 32.

Acts deemed public Acts Sections to be substantive enactments Act may be amended in same session Preambles, schedules etc. to form part of written law Headings, marginal notes and footnotes

26 26 26 26 26

Part V — Repeal of written law 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38.

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Repeal of written law includes repeal of amendments Repeal of repealing enactment, effect of Repeal and substitution of provision, effect of Repealing and re-enacting a provision, effect of General savings on repeal Repeal of Act, effect of on subsidiary legislation

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Interpretation Act 1984

Contents

39.

Expiry of enactment, effect of

29

Part VI — Subsidiary legislation 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 45A. 46. 47.

Governor to make subsidiary legislation Publication and commencement of subsidiary legislation Laying regulations, rules, local laws and by-laws before Parliament, and disallowance Power to make subsidiary legislation, general provisions about Words and expressions in subsidiary legislation, meaning of Fees and charges Fees for licences, effect of power to prescribe Reference to written law includes reference to subsidiary legislation made under it Acts done under subsidiary legislation deemed done under Act

30 30 30 32 34 35 36 36 37

Part VII — Statutory powers and duties 48. 48A. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59.

Time for exercise of power or performance of duty Judicial acts and service of process may be done on any day Public officer’s powers and duties may be exercised by acting officer etc. Statutory powers, construction of Power to issue licences and other authorisations is discretionary Power to appoint includes power to remove, suspend, appoint acting officer etc. Appointments may be by name or office Statutory bodies, majority and quorum provisions Errors when exercising certain powers or duties may be corrected “May” imports a discretion, “shall” is imperative Statutory bodies, powers of not affected by vacancies etc. Delegates, performance of functions by Power to delegate, effect of

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38 38 38 38 39 40 41 41 42 42 42 43 43 page iii

Interpretation Act 1984

Contents

60.

Governor to act with advice of Executive Council

44

Part VIII — Provisions regarding time and distance 61. 62. 63. 64. 65.

Time, computation of Months, reckoning of Time for doing acts if no time fixed Power to extend time, construction of Distance, measurement of

45 46 46 47 47

Part IX — Procedures and penalties 66. 67. 69. 71. 72.

Rules of court Offences and proceedings for offences Bodies corporate, application of penal laws to Continuing offences Statutory penalties, construction of

48 48 49 49 50

Part X — Miscellaneous provisions 73. 74. 75. 76. 76A. 77.

State deemed established 1 June 1829 Prescribed forms, certain deviations do not invalidate Service of documents by post Service of documents generally Written laws made before Australia Acts, validity of Repeal and saving

52 52 52 53 53 54

Notes Compilation table

55

Defined terms

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Western Australia

Interpretation Act 1984 An Act to amend and consolidate the law relating to the construction, application, interpretation, and operation of written law; to provide for the exercise of statutory powers and duties; and to provide for connected or incidental purposes.

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page 1

Interpretation Act 1984 Part I Preliminary s. 1

Part I — Preliminary 1.

Short title This Act may be cited as the Interpretation Act 1984 1.

2.

Commencement This Act shall come into operation on 1 July 1984.

3.

Application (1)

The provisions of this Act apply to every written law, whether the law was enacted, passed, made, or issued before or after the commencement of this Act, unless in relation to a particular written law — (a) (b)

express provision is made to the contrary; or in the case of an Act, the intent and object of the Act or something in the subject or context of the Act is inconsistent with such application; or

(c)

in the case of subsidiary legislation, the intent and object of the Act under which that subsidiary legislation is made is inconsistent with such application.

(2)

The provisions of this Act apply to this Act as they apply to an Act passed after this Act commences.

(3)

A reference in section 17, 25, 43(6), 45, 50 or 64 to an Act, written law, enactment, or subsidiary legislation passed or made after the commencement of this Act shall be construed so as not to include any enactment which continues or directly amends, but does not repeal entirely, the text of an existing written law 2.

4.

Act binds Crown This Act binds the Crown.

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Interpretation Act 1984 General interpretation provisions Part II s. 5

Part II — General interpretation provisions 5.

Terms used in written laws In this Act and every other written law — act used with reference to an offence or civil wrong includes an omission and extends to a series of acts or omissions or a series of acts and omissions; Act means any Act or Ordinance passed by the Parliament of Western Australia, or by any Council previously having authority or power to pass laws in Western Australia, such Act or Ordinance having been assented to by or on behalf of Her Majesty; affidavit means an affidavit made in accordance with the Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations Act 2005 or made before the commencement of that Act in accordance with law; alternative offence, when used in relation to an offence, has the meaning given by section 10B of The Criminal Code; amend means replace, substitute, in whole or in part, add to or vary, and the doing of any 2 or more of such things simultaneously or by the same written law; ASIC Law and ASIC Regulations have the meaning provided for by Part 11 of the Corporations (Western Australia) Act 1990; Auditor General means the person holding the office of Auditor General for Western Australia continued by section 6 of the Auditor General Act 2006; Australia means the Commonwealth of Australia; Australia Acts means — (a) the Australia Act 1986 of the Commonwealth; and (b) the Australia Act 1986 of the United Kingdom; bank holiday, in relation to an area, means a day that is appointed or declared a bank holiday for that area by or under the Public and Bank Holidays Act 1972;

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Interpretation Act 1984 Part II General interpretation provisions s. 5

bankrupt and bankrupt or a person whose affairs are under insolvency laws have the meanings given in section 13D; book — (a) when used in relation to the recording of accounting or financial information, includes any method or system of recording such information that has been approved by the Treasurer; and (b)

when used in relation to the recording of information other than accounting or financial information, includes any method or system of recording such information that has been approved by the Minister to whom the administration of the relevant enactment has been committed by the Governor; British possession means any part of Her Majesty’s dominions outside the United Kingdom; and where parts of such dominions are under both a central and local legislature, all parts under the central legislature are deemed, for the purposes of this definition, to be one British possession; by-law means a by-law made under the Act in which the term is used; chief executive officer has the meaning given by the Public Sector Management Act 1994 and — (a) when used in relation to —

(b)

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(i)

an agency within the meaning of that Act; or

(ii)

an office or employee in, or anything else connected with, an agency within the meaning of that Act,

means the chief executive officer of the agency; and when used in an enactment otherwise than in the circumstances referred to in paragraph (a), means the chief executive officer of the agency principally assisting the Minister administering the enactment in its administration;

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Interpretation Act 1984 General interpretation provisions Part II s. 5

Children’s Court means the Children’s Court of Western Australia established by the Children’s Court of Western Australia Act 1988; commencement, in relation to an enactment, means the time when the enactment came or comes into operation; Commissioner of State Revenue means the Commissioner of State Revenue appointed under the Public Sector Management Act 1994 for the purposes of the Taxation Administration Act 2003; Commonwealth means the Commonwealth of Australia; Commonwealth Act or Act of the Commonwealth means an Act passed by the Parliament of the Commonwealth; Consolidated Account means the Consolidated Account referred to in section 64 of the Constitution Act 1889; contravene, in relation to any requirement or condition prescribed in a written law or in any grant, permit, lease, licence, or other authority under a written law, includes a failure to comply with that requirement or condition; Corporations Law and Corporations Regulations have the meaning provided for by Part 3 of the Corporations (Western Australia) Act 1990; Court of Appeal means the Court of Appeal established under the Supreme Court Act 1935; court of summary jurisdiction means the Children’s Court or the Magistrates Court; death, of a person, has a meaning affected by section 13C; de facto partner and de facto relationship have the meanings given in section 13A; definition means the interpretation given by any written law to a word or expression; District Court means The District Court of Western Australia established by the District Court of Western Australia Act 1969;

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Interpretation Act 1984 Part II General interpretation provisions s. 5

District Court judge means a judge, acting judge or auxiliary judge of the District Court; document includes any publication and any matter written, expressed, or described upon any substance by means of letters, figures, or marks, or by more than one of those means, which is intended to be used or may be used for the purpose of recording that matter; enactment means a written law or any portion of a written law; estate, in relation to land, includes any legal or equitable estate or interest, easement, right, title, claim, demand, charge, lien, or encumbrance in, over, to, or in respect of the land; Family Court or Family Court of Western Australia means the Family Court of Western Australia continued by the Family Court Act 1997; financial year means the period of 12 months ending on 30 June; function includes powers, duties, responsibilities, authorities, and jurisdictions; Gazette or Government Gazette means the government gazette of Western Australia printed and published, or purporting to be printed and published, by the Government Printer and includes any supplement to that gazette; Government means the Government of the State; Government Printer means the Government Printer of the State and any other printer authorised by or on behalf of the Government to print any written law or any other document of the Government; Governor means the Governor of the State and includes the officer for the time being administering the Government of the State; Her Majesty, His Majesty, Queen, King, or Crown means the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, Australia and Her other Realms and Territories, and Head of the Commonwealth and

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Interpretation Act 1984 General interpretation provisions Part II s. 5

includes the predecessors and the heirs and successors of the Sovereign; Imperial Act means an Act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom; indictable offence has the meaning given by section 67; individual means a natural person; judge means a judge, acting judge or auxiliary judge of the Supreme Court; justice of the peace or justice or JP means a justice of the peace appointed under the Justices of the Peace Act 2004; land includes buildings and other structures, land covered with water, and any estate, interest, easement, servitude or right in or over land; local government means a local government established under the Local Government Act 1995; local government district has the meaning given by section 13CA; local law means a local law made by a local government under the Act in which the term is used; magistrate means a magistrate of the Magistrates Court; Magistrates Court means the Magistrates Court of Western Australia established by the Magistrates Court Act 2004; Minister has the meaning given in section 12; Minister for Public Sector Management means the Minister of the Crown to whom the administration of the Public Sector Management Act 1994 is for the time being committed by the Governor; month has the meaning given in section 62; oath means an oath or affirmation taken or made in accordance with the Oaths, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations Act 2005 or taken or made before the commencement of that Act in accordance with law;

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Interpretation Act 1984 Part II General interpretation provisions s. 5

parent includes the following — (a) a person who is a parent within the meaning of the Artificial Conception Act 1985; (b)

a person who is an adoptive parent under the Adoption Act 1994; (c) a person who is a parent in a relationship of parent and child that arises because of a parentage order under the Surrogacy Act 2008; Parliament means the Parliament of the State; penalty means a fine, imprisonment, or other form of punishment, including the suspension or cancellation of a licence, registration or permit and disqualification from obtaining a licence, registration or permit; perform, in relation to functions, includes the exercise of a power, responsibility, authority or jurisdiction; person or any word or expression descriptive of a person includes a public body, company, or association or body of persons, corporate or unincorporate; police officer means a person appointed under Part I of the Police Act 1892 to be a member of the Police Force of Western Australia; power includes any privilege, authority, or discretion; prescribed means — (a) prescribed by or under the written law in which the word occurs; and (b)

in a case where reference is made to anything prescribed by a written law other than the law in which the word occurs, includes anything prescribed by subsidiary legislation made under that other written law;

proclamation means a proclamation made by the Governor and published in the Gazette;

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Interpretation Act 1984 General interpretation provisions Part II s. 5

public half-holiday, in relation to an area, means a part of a day that is appointed or declared a public half-holiday for that area by or under the Public and Bank Holidays Act 1972; public holiday, in relation to an area, means a day that is appointed or declared a public holiday for that area by or under the Public and Bank Holidays Act 1972; Public Sector Commissioner means the person holding the office established by the Public Sector Management Act 1994 section 16; Public Service has the meaning given by the Public Sector Management Act 1994; public service holiday means a holiday prescribed as such under the Public Service Act 1978 3; public service officer has the meaning given in the Public Sector Management Act 1994 section 3(1); publication means — (a) all written and printed matter; and (b) any record, tape, wire, perforated roll, cinematograph film or images or other contrivance by means of which any words or ideas may be mechanically, electronically, or electrically produced, reproduced, represented, or conveyed; and (c) any...